Way-Too-Early 2026-27 Missouri Boys Basketball Top 10 Rankings

The dust has barely settled on the 2025–26 season and here we are, already mapping out who's going to run Missouri boys basketball next winter. That's what this sport does to you. Some rosters will look completely different by November — transfers will happen and coaches will make moves. Based on what we know right now, these are the programs best positioned to matter when the lights come back on. Consider this a conversation starter, not a verdict.

1. Principia

Nobody dethrones the Panthers until someone actually does it. Sekou Cisse, Gassim Toure, Wyatt Slay, and Kingston Money form one of the most loaded senior classes in the state, and that alone makes Principia the team everyone else has to solve. Add in 2029s Majok Kau and Pitor Rychlewski coming off the bench and contributing real minutes, and you're looking at a program that doesn't just reload — it restocks. The standard has been set. Everyone else is chasing it.

2. Logan-Rogersville

Losing pieces always stings, but this program's identity isn't going anywhere as long as Chase Branham and Titus Moore are suiting up. Both return with another year of experience and another offseason of hunger — and they were already the two best players on arguably the second-best team in the state at season's end. Keep an eye on rising junior Jack Sutherland, who has every reason to take a big leap in Year 3.

3. Vianney

A class bump to Class 6 is almost certainly coming, and the Golden Griffins should walk into that new address as the favorites. Why? Because Brock Long, Omar Long, Chase Duke, and Mamadou Barry are all back — and together they account for well over half the team's scoring production. Returning four starters from a team of this caliber isn't a rebuild story. It's a closing argument. Vianney has everything it needs to go take something.

4. Chaminade

Yes, both starting guards are gone. But anyone counting out the Red Devils clearly hasn't been paying attention to the junior class coming up behind them. Elijah Poniewaz, Jesiah Buchanan, and Mo Kourouma are a trifecta that should command attention for the next two seasons — not just one. Luke Jordan and Vance Weber step into rotation roles as sophomores and give head coach Frank Bennett the kind of depth that makes January road trips a lot less stressful. Don't sleep on them.

5. Webster Groves

Scottie Adkinson is going to be one of the most talked-about players in Missouri next season, and he knows it. As a senior with records in his sights, he'll have every reason to come out attacking — and for the first time in a while, he'll have serious help doing it. Peter Oliver, Jackson Tabash, and Bryce Millien all have varsity experience and the ability to stretch the floor. Adkinson doesn't need to carry this team alone. That makes them genuinely dangerous.

6. Vashon

The Wolverines are going to need to develop from within to fill out their roster — that's just the reality. But Jimmy McKinney III and Leon Powell give this program a two-man punch that can score the ball at any level. Vashon doesn't do rebuilds the way other programs do rebuilds. They compete. They find guys. They make Class 4 uncomfortable. That's not changing.

7. St. Dominic

The Crusaders were knocking on the door of sectionals before a tough, close loss to Francis Howell Central cut the season short. What makes next year different? This group is overwhelmingly made up of 2027 prospects — meaning next season is the year they've been pointing toward. Senior-heavy rosters that have been building together for three years are dangerous. St. Dominic has been patient. Now comes the payoff.

8. De Smet

Coach Kent Williams is entering different territory — this is his first season in a while without the same core that defined the program's recent run. There will be an adjustment period; no reason to pretend otherwise. But Williams doesn't do down years. Will Foulk steps into a prominent role at guard and will need to be a real contributor from day one. The expectation at De Smet doesn't change, even when the faces do.

9. North Kansas City

This program gets overlooked too often, and it shouldn't. They're one of the better-coached teams in Missouri — full stop. LJ Torrence, a 6-foot-7 forward with the length to cause matchup problems, pairs well with rising junior Mikey Cruthird. Add in the athletic culture and toughness this staff has built, and North Kansas City is a team that could do real damage next season.

10. Westminster

Will Powers is going to be one of the bigger names in Missouri basketball next season — and the wider college recruiting world is starting to catch on. A recent offer from Northern Iowa (before head coach Ben Jacobson took the Utah State job) is a sign of what scouts already know. Rising senior guard Andrew Walker is another name worth tracking as the season approaches. Westminster's ceiling as a program runs through how well these two perform when the spotlight finds them.

Rankings based on projected returning rosters following the 2025–26 season. Transfers and roster changes will happen.